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Originally Posted by Boromir88
I never thought about it from your take:
I agree that Bilbo doesn't go through any physical changes, but never considered the meaning not only shows how Bilbo still desires the Ring, but how the Ring has also changed Frodo. Frodo is filled with a desire to "strike" the "little, wrinkled creature." I would say that is the Ring urging Frodo to strike Bilbo, because that doesn't seem like a Frodo-thing to do. Maybe Frodo remembers this moment when he sees and pities Gollum?
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Thanks for considering my point of view! I suppose the book version is inherently ambiguous and it could be that both are true at the same time: Bilbo's desire for the Ring breaks through in that moment AND Frodo has an exaggerated perception and reaction due to the Ring's influence. In that way the Ring's influence manages to estrange the former and the current Ringbearer from one another and their otherwise strong relationship.
I'm sure you are right about Frodo and his important feeling of pity towards Gollum, an actual
little wrinkled creature with a hungry face and bony groping hands.
What gets me about this description in regards to Bilbo is that it could be, at face value, not so far off from reality in the sense that Bilbo is pretty old and probably also pretty wrinkled. His face might be kind of sunken and his hands boney from weight loss due to his age. However, those aren't the kind of things you would view as
despicable, if you even notice them, when you look at your beloved parents or grandparents! It's like the Ring took away all the love Frodo had for that old Hobbit.
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Originally Posted by Boromir88
That is generally my thoughts about Peter Jackson's LOTR movies. As movies I enjoyed them, and still do, but all art is subjective and they're not going to be everyone's cup of tea. As adaptations, on the surface they seem to convey the broader picture, but scratch the surface just a bit and they miss the point entirely.
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Man, as movies I absolutely adore them. Especially when you consider how action adventure/fantasy-movies have evolved since then in the last two decades.
PJ's movies have their problems, even if you don't look at them as adaptations of the literature. But the technical realization, the attention to detail and the use of every trick from the book of a filmmaker marks the end of an era. From the practical effects, miniatures, sets, real locations, costumes, props, make-up etc. I don't think we will see anything like it again in the foreseeable future. Movies just aren't made like this anymore.
In addition, PJ and his team, even if you don't share it, had a vision and they implemented it. The films are not the primary product of endless producer board meetings, re-edits, audience test screenings and marked research divisions, and it shows. Although it is entirely possible that I'm finally becoming the grumpy man that is blinded by nostalgia and the good ol' days.